


Gently Burning

by Elske



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-29
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-02-08 05:37:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12857895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elske/pseuds/Elske
Summary: (Rafael’s feverish brain ignores two things: for one, that his fiancé is a detective, and for two, that fresh coffee has a smell that permeates the entire apartment.)





	Gently Burning

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lawyerboyfriends](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lawyerboyfriends/gifts).



Rafael looks guiltily at the battered box of Red Rose tea sitting on the counter. Sonny’d put it there and started the kettle just before he left -- to get honey and juice and chicken soup and probably, Rafael assumes, actual cold medicine, even if it wasn’t on the list of things he said he was getting.

He picks up the tea box, turns it over in his hands, then sets it gently back down on the counter. There’s a little coffee ground from yesterday, exactly enough for one cup, and he - almost guiltily - measures it out into the french press. 

Secret coffee in hand, he perches on the edge of the couch, listens for the sound of Sonny’s return while he drinks his coffee. He can get rid of the evidence quickly, he thinks. His fiancé will never know that he ignored the “make yourself some tea” part of the instructions he gave before he left. When he hears the jingling of keys at the door and quickly swallows the last of his coffee, bitterness and dregs and something like guilt lingering gently on his tongue with the far-too-large sip.

(Rafael’s feverish brain ignores two things: for one, that his fiancé is a detective, and for two, that fresh coffee has a smell that permeates the entire apartment.)

“You made coffee?” Sonny says, and he’s smiling as he picks up the bags of groceries and puts them on the kitchen counter.

“Yes,” Rafael admits, refusing to meet his fiancé’s gaze.

“Oh, Rafael,” murmurs Sonny. He sits next to Rafael on the couch, presses his cool hand against Rafael’s forehead. “You’re burning up, I never should have left you, but I had to. You were amazingly unprepared for this.”

“I never get sick,” Rafael protests weakly. 

“Of course you don’t.” Sonny leans in and kisses him quickly. “I’ll be right back, okay?” He busies himself in the kitchen, taking things out of bags and putting them away. He’s carrying three things for Rafael when he returns to the couch - a glass filled with ice and orange juice, a plastic container of chicken soup from the deli, and a bottle of NyQuil. Rafael reaches for the juice, and Sonny sets the other things on the coffee table.

“This is so good,” Rafael murmurs, because it is cold and sweet and delicious. He holds the empty glass of ice against his cheek, eyes fluttering closed for a long moment. 

“You need some of this too,” Sonny says, opening the cold medicine and pouring out a dose. “Especially now that you’ve had caffeine. My ma always said you heal when you’re sleeping.”

Rafael makes a little noise of disgust. “That stuff tastes like ouzo and regret.” He gives Sonny a look, but he takes the little cup of bright green medicine and tips it into his mouth.

“You make a surprisingly good patient,” Sonny remarks, taking the cup back, handing Rafael the container of soup. “Eat something, okay, and then you can go to sleep and I promise you’ll feel at least a little better when you wake up.”

Sonny picks up the remote control and flips through the tv channels while Rafael eats his soup; he settles on the food network, turns the volume down low. Rafael finishes his lunch, leans forward to put the empty container on the coffee table, then settles back against the couch. He looks at Sonny, who opens his arms and pulls Rafael in close, heedless of the other man’s germs. Sonny kisses Rafael’s forehead, kisses his lips. “Lie down,” he says, “I’ve got you,” and Rafael stretches out on the couch with his head on Sonny’s lap. He falls asleep to the calming feel of Sonny stroking his hair, dreams of coffee and tea, of dancing in orange groves, of a honeymoon in Greece, of being loved.


End file.
